My SO and I have FINALLY decided to start trying to conceive. I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the research I've been doing. So.. Any advice you wish someone would have told you before having a child? Or any advice in general would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!

No amount of prep really prepares you for parenthood. I'm the poster child for this statement. It's different and unpredictable to everything else you know or could possibly research. Just realize you can't control everything and be prepared to go with the flow.

I'm just one of those people that likes to have a plan, everything be organized, and everything go smoothly. Obviously this is an unrealistic expectation, but any kind of advice that you wish you would have known during ur pregnancy or about an infant is a great help :)

So am I. Obviously you should still do all this, but also know that no matter how well you've educated yourself, you're still going to be stunned and overwhelmed by how difficult taking care of a newborn actually is. There's just no way to really understand it, no matter how much you read, until you've been through it.

I have a 10 day old. I can't emphasize enough how much harder it is than you think it's going to be. I thought it was going to be really really hard and it turns out it's much worse than I could ever have imagined. But then there's like an hour where he just sleeps on me and I remember that this is the best thing I've ever done.

Open a new account (hopefully one that has no fees of any kind) and put as much money in it as possible every time you can. Deposit whatever you have available, whether it is $5 or $75 or 98¢. Try not to touch that money, it belongs to baby. Use that money for doctor's visits if need be, but try to save it to pay off the bill you get from the delivery. Just keep in mind no matter how much you save, it won't be enough for everything, unless money isn't an issue in which case just open the account in my name.
If you have any money left in the account after paying all your medical bills, just keep adding to it so it can become baby's college or emergency fund.
Congratulations on making this life changing decision. Try not to get so wrapped up in "we have to conceive now" mode that you don't enjoy the fun sex part. Remember, some people are lucky to get pregnant immediately and some people take a while. (It took us 9 months of trying before we had a pregnancy that ended in MC. Then, we ended up pregnant the next month when we weren't even trying, so just enjoy the trying part and don't worry about the pregnancy part. It will happen when it is supposed to happen.) Best of luck to you both.

Nothing is perfect. You can plan all you want, read all the books in the world, and nothing will be what you expect. But that's okay.

Your temper will be tested. If you're going on five days straight of horrible sleep (half an hour here, 45 minutes there, maybe a stretch of two hours at night) and you can't get them to stop crying...don't be afraid to set them down and remove yourself from the situation. Just take a few minutes to do deep breathing, meditate, pray, or ask your partner to take over for a bit.

Don't compare yourself (or your kid) to others. My wife had three co-workers have babies at the same time that we did and they naturally compare notes. But that's led to this weird keeping up with the Joneses thing. One of them is always saying "Gosh, I wish our boy would sleep like yours" or "SoAndSo is so little and your kid is so big...I hope nothing's wrong". If they're eating, pooping, sleeping, and happy then you're doing well. Everything else is a bonus.

Have fun. I don't know about you, but this may be the only kid we have. I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that all of us (me, wife, and baby) enjoy the hell out of it. If that means holding him a little more than what the books recommend, that's just how it's going to go.

I am in the midst of a 5 and 3 year old and it's so true. No amount of reading will prepare you for it. At the same time, I think it's great to do whatever helps you feel confident and secure amongst the unknown. If that makes sense.
A few pieces of advice that I liked and worked for me:
1. Have your child fit YOUR life, don't change your life to fit them. We went camping, had people over and didn't tell them to be quiet. Our kids can sleep through anything. It's their background noise.

You can't only do so much. Take care of yourself. A great thing I learned was the E.A.S.Y principle. E (eat) - Feed the baby then do some A (Activity) then they S(sleep) and once they are asleep it is time for Y (You). In that YOU time, do what you need. If it is sleep, then sleep. If it's laundry or cleaning, great!

I found that taking prenatal classes with my husband was really helpful. I barely remember much of what they told us but it was nice having a sense of shared responsibility and being in a group of first-timers like ourselves.

Here's my little accumulation of "been there, done that" advice that I've been giving to my new and soon-to-be parent friends as topics come up. I collected it into a tumblr for ease of sharing. Hopefully I'll be adding a few things soon, such as advice for early pregnancy, supplies for 12-18 month olds, and my thoughts on "toddler leashes" and balancing safety and independence.

8 day old here. Just have some extras of.... Everything. Bottles, blankets, burpies, wipes, diapers, pacifiers. And pay attention to your baby, they will tell you what's up. It's either wet diaper, hunger, or uncomfortable.

Basically, don't take frustrations out on eachother, still have "you time" for just yourself and you and your so, dont stress too much with the child, they do bounce and will be ok. Dont jump at every whimper or cry. When they get bigger and get an owie, don't make a big deal about it, just take care of it. And don't always be the one taking care of the child and don't make your so be the one always taking care of the child. And for the love of god. Don't be a friend, be a parent. If your child is bad, for the sake of every one around spank the child. It is not illegal to do so. My fiance's kids father has called cps on us twice because I am raising his kids and they get spanked when they act up. Cps has told me they are the best behaved children they have came across and that spanking is perfectly fine and legal as long as the child does not bruise and it is with an open palm. Do not let people tell you otherwise. And don't forget to feed the kids, they kinda like food... They eat everything so be ready for the bills.